


The Truth Of It   or  The Day That Changed Everything

by Larryhasmyheart



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Non-Famous, Colgate Comedy Hour, Falling In Love, Fluff, Horses, Jerry Lewis - Freeform, M/M, POV Second Person, Self-Discovery, Tenderness, Warm and Fuzzy Feelings, You are Louis, dean martin - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-17
Updated: 2019-01-17
Packaged: 2019-10-11 21:26:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,575
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17454596
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Larryhasmyheart/pseuds/Larryhasmyheart
Summary: You are Louis, the son of a wealthy horseman.  Your father has been trying to ingratiate you into his circle of friends and set you up with their daughters, but you just aren’t feeling it.Instead, ever since the new stable hand smiled at you, you have been drawn to the barn. Today, you come to understand why.





	The Truth Of It   or  The Day That Changed Everything

**Author's Note:**

> Hello readers!
> 
> Big thanks to 1DShortFicFest for the opportunity to share my writing with you. This is my first attempt to write in second person, as I wanted to stretch my legs a bit! My hope is that you will be drawn into the character and feel what he's feeling. 
> 
> I really want to thank Lynda for her willingness to be my second set of eyes and beta for me! You can find her on Tumbler at Wait4ever. Thank you Lynda for your expertise and patience!
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

Once again, you find yourself in the musty tack lounge of the barn watching your old Martin and Lewis DVD comedy favorites. 

You giggle at the duo on the screen…then at yourself. Though your rich father has supplied you with a decked-to-the-hilt theater room up at the house, here you are in the dusty, cramped space meant for the hired grooms. 

Puzzling.

The familiar voice in your head taunts you like an errant classmate:

“Right, Louis, so puzzling…so very puzzling!”

No sooner do you shoo it away when suddenly the sounds of rustling hay and nickering horses echo through the stalls, announcing someone’s arrival. Your breath catches. Flicking your delicate fringe to the side, you look over your shoulder, but can’t quite see out the door you’ve conveniently left open. 

The horses get quiet and you listen intently as you begin to hear a voice murmuring soft, sweet nothings. They come floating down the stable aisle, and for some reason you can no longer get enough air. 

Quietly, you stretch around as far as you can, fruitlessly trying to get a view. 

You’re sure it’s the curly-haired groom. He is always here at this time of day after chores sweet-talking his favorite mare…and nobody croons to the horses like he does. A sudden longing floods you.

Feeling your face flush, you turn back around and tell yourself he’s NOT the reason you insist on being here…it’s because the red-leather seats and 60-foot TV screen in the house have always felt sterile and depressing, the company of your father’s fancy friends is boring, and the girls they keep bringing around are… uninspiring. 

You stare at the screen, but Martin and Lewis are now a mere distraction. 

You haven’t spoken to the stable boy since the day he was introduced as the new hand, and you wonder if he will ever notice you again. Was his shy, dimpled smile that first day meant for you? Had he blinked his sparkling green eyes flirtatiously? You figure it had to be your imagination, but still can’t stop thinking about it. 

The hope of another encounter with him is the big reason you keep coming back to the tack room, and inside you know it. The stable boy is much more to your liking than… any girl you have ever met.

Your heart beats just a little harder as you finally admit it.

The scrape of a boot startles you, interrupting your reverie. You turn to find the curly-haired stable hand standing in the doorway apologetically, a small smile on his face. Is there a hiding place or a hole you can slip into, suddenly feeling exposed? You sit there frozen for a moment, your heart accelerating at an alarming rate.

“Sorry,” the lovely lips spoke, “I didn’t mean to interrupt you.” 

His voice is like velvet, and you now know why the horses succumb to it so readily.

“Um,” you attempt to answer, exhaling carefully. “No problem at all.” You sound totally normal… you are doing fine.

“I just left my cell phone over there on the shelf by the TV.” 

He points as he speaks, then runs his hand through his hair, fingers catching on a small piece of straw. You watch as he picks it out with fine precision, his eyes rolling up to assist him, and he examines it in front of his emerald eyes like it could be anything other than a piece of hay. You imagine with that head of hair this is a common occurrence. You imagine how much straw could get stuck in his hair if…

“I’ll just go over and get it,” he states with a smile in his voice, and you know you have been staring.

You flop back and dust rises, tickling your nose, while you rest your arm on the backrest, fist on your head.

“Be my guest,” you answer as casually as possible, gesturing towards the shelf. 

He crosses in front of the screen and reaches his phone, standing there a moment to check… messages? He is wearing his work jeans and a dark grey tee that is now rumpled from a day’s work, but you still think he looks pretty fine. You tell yourself he is just getting his phone, he is not flirting, so just stop it, stop…

He turns and stares at the TV screen for a moment, the very moment Jerry jumps into Dean’s arms on the Colgate Comedy Hour. He grins and giggles, and you aren’t sure but the room might be spinning.

“You like Jerry Lewis?” You find yourself asking. 

He looks at you and there it is again…the green sparkle that has captivated you since that first day.

“Sure! Especially him and Dean. Only I’ve just seen their movies…”

Taking the bull by the horns, you scoot over and shake your thumb at the empty spot beside you.

“Feel free to join me if you want,” you bravely offer. “These are from before they even made movies, when they just got started.” You feel pretty darn proud of yourself.

He looks from the screen to the spot on the couch, saying, “Gosh, I’d like that, but…” 

As he hesitates, your heart drops down to your toes in disappointment, but you pull a foot up onto the seat and lazily tap your hand on your knee. 

“No biggie,” you shrug, confident you haven’t given yourself away.

Something like alarm crosses Curly’s face. “I really would like to watch with you…”

Your heart doesn’t know where it belongs now, as he looks down and runs a hand over the front of his shirt.

“I’m just…” he continues sheepishly, “I’m just kind of dirty.” 

Your fingers stop drumming. You can’t believe your ears. He’s worried about being dirty. Does that mean…

You find your voice and his eyes before he could say anything else.

“Listen, Curly…” you begin, and cringe inwardly. Then you look around the small room and make a sweeping gesture, raising your eyebrows in a grin. “We aren’t exactly in the Taj Mahal.” 

He laughs, mostly at himself it seems, and you grin back at him, patting the empty spot. He sits down, shaking his head self-consciously. 

“That was kinda silly of me.”

You elbow him in the arm and say, “Don’t worry about it!”

The roof seems to fall as you make eye contact, and you smile genuinely, adding, “I do appreciate the thought though.”

He smiles back, and for a moment you are drowning in a sea of green, incapable of expressing anything coherent… the sudden flush of his cheeks brings a growing pleasant ball of fire in your gut. You both blink away and turn to watch Jerry cup his hands around Dean’s face, laughing as only he can. The studio audience eats it up, and when Jerry turns to them and quips “dirty pictures” they roar with appreciation as Dean throws his arms up in mock disgust.

Your eyes are still glued to the screen, but you feel Curly next to you shaking with mirth. Suddenly it seems like you are watching Martin and Lewis for the first time, and it never hit you before how friendly they were with each other… fixing each other’s ties, grinning into each other’s faces, generally very familiar with each other. You feel your face redden self-consciously.

Dean croons to the audience as Jerry directs the band and falls on the floor; now you are both laughing, and as you sneak a glance at the boy next to you, you know laughing with him is the best thing.

“This is great,” he says, smiling at the screen. “So they were, like, regular stand-up comedians?”

“Yes!” You are thrilled to share your knowledge with him. “They met when Jerry basically photo-bombed Dean’s music gigs, and people liked them so much they got a whole TV show, The Colgate Comedy Hour. That is their best stuff, really, before they signed their movie contracts with the studio.”

Curly’s eyes dance with genuine interest. Turning on the couch to face him and gesturing with your hands, your voice speeds up as you continue.

“In fact, I have the whole DVD set up at the main house. We have this really cool thea….”

You pull up short. When did you decide the theater room was so great? Up to now, you’ve never thought about it as “really cool.” The truth of it fills you with growing conviction; it would be cool with Curly. Anything with Curly would be...amazing. 

He meets your eyes as if sensing a change. You are a little frightened, but in a good way, and continue in a voice that reflects the wonder of it.

“We have this really cool theater room. It has a big screen, padded comfy chairs… the works. Would you like to see it with me sometime? We can watch the whole set.”

You look for any sign of disinterest or offence in his expression… but only find a bashful sort of joy, and you know what his answer will be before he speaks.

“I would love that!” 

Never before have you understood the saying “it’s not where you are but who you are with” like you understand it right now, and you have a feeling that this is the day you will look back on as being the day that changed the course of your life… the day that changed everything.


End file.
